Robert Mondavi Winery is proud to honor the extraordinary life of Margrit Mondavi, its Vice President of Cultural Affairs, with the much-anticipated release of Margrit Mondavi’s Sketchbook: Reflections on Wine, Food, Art, Family, Romance and Life. Available July 12, 2012, the elegant 147-page hardcover book highlights a collection of intriguing, personal stories, including reflections on her life with the late Napa Valley iconic vintner, Robert Mondavi, and a foreword by renowned chef Thomas Keller. Written with the help of James Beard Award-winning food columnist and author Janet Fletcher, and enriched with Margrit’s own art/watercolor drawings, Margrit’s sketchbook celebrates a lifelong commitment to creating a food and wine culture in Napa Valley through original, innovative programs that have become benchmarks in the culinary and art worlds.

“I’m reliving my life in a way,” says Margrit Mondavi. “It is just precious at my late stage, or dare I say ‘vintage,’ to tell so many stories about the defining, joyful and hard moments of my life.” A number of Margrit’s close friends contributed with their own personal stories and anecdotes to provide an authentic, narrative portrait of Margrit. “She has become, for me, a model of how to live and regardless of age touch people’s lives for the better. She lives in style but her tastes remain simple, and her capacity for relishing the dawn of each day should inspire us all,” says Janet Fletcher.

“Her memoir, based on diary entries she has faithfully kept her entire life, is a testament to an existence filled with generosity and one that embraces every new journey,” says Thomas Keller, close friend and chef/owner of the French Laundry. “This book, filled with glimpses of her unique and remarkable